Living the Nashville Dream

(from the book Twisted by the Wind by Tom Hays)

Cody walked onstage and surveyed the huge, cheering crowd, soaking in the excitement and energy radiated by thousands of adoring fans, the flashing effects lighting, the fog, and fireworks spewing from the pillars behind him. The warm-up band had been good … but the huge audience had evidently come to see him, Cody, the star attraction.

“Cody! Cody! Cody!” Their chant filled the huge auditorium to the rafters.

He threw his right arm up in the air with his guitar pick in-hand in a gesturing salute to the crowd, and the cheers grew even louder, more demanding!

Turning his head slightly to the right, he gave a shallow nod to the keyboard player, and his band began the set. The crowd was still screaming over the first, familiar bars of the first song.

He stepped to the mike, sang the first line, and the crowd noise swelled again. It was one of his signature songs, one he had written himself, one of many that had placed him on the top of the charts over and over again. At the chorus, everyone in the audience sang the hook with him. They knew it as well as he did.

Women in the front rows charged the foot of the stage, trying to get closer, reaching for a touch of his pant leg, tossing flowers along with notes, phone numbers, and undergarments onto the stage.

Cody smiled broadly, his pearl-white teeth gleaming in the spotlights. The crowd grew more frenzied and their sing-along turned to cheering at the top of their lungs, louder and louder, a constant high-pitched roar!

The loud buzzer on the timer over his head brought him to now. He suddenly realized the French fries were done. He lifted them from the cooker and dumped them into the draining tray. He salted them liberally and scooped them into small, red cardboard sleeves and placed the packages one by one onto the serving rack.

His dream had brought him to Nashville for his big break nearly five years earlier.

Looking through the small opening over the rack holding the cooked fries, out to the serving counter and beyond to those waiting in line, he saw a collection of other wannabe dreamers on both sides of the counter, all playing the lottery in some form or other.

Some, like him, playing the “Nashville Lottery” and hoping for a chance at fame.

Others, perhaps with an equal chance, simply purchased their lottery tickets at the quick mart, hoping for the big hand of chance to point to them and say, “You!”

Cody’s dream had followed him from Oklahoma all the way to Nashville. It was as real as any dream had ever been. He had lived it over and over … but after five years it was still just a dream. And it was still no closer to reality than it ever was.

He dumped more frozen fries into the cooker and hit the button to start the timer again. As the white fries sizzled in the oil, Cody slipped slowly back into his dream.

The crowd was still roaring as he began the second song. Cody tipped his cowboy hat and gave them a thumbs up.

There are people all over the world who wished they could be in Nashville, living the dream. Cody had made it.

Others, like Ben, knew about dreaming, but they knew about waking up too. Ben wanted to live in the best reality he could imagine.

Now Available!! Twisted by the Wind

"Twisted by the Wind - A Journal of Inspirations, Conversations and Imaginations" written by Tom Hays has been published. It is a collection of short stories and words of wisdom, with a fair amount of humor added. The book chronicles a philosophical spirit developed on the plains of Oklahoma, the Arizona desert, Nashville, and the wine country of California, honed though a lifetime of entrepreneurial endeavors and adventures.

You will love it. Order here.

Music Makes The World Go 'round

My first memory of music was of sensing the steady, rhythmic thump, thump, thump of my mother’s heartbeat, as I snuggled warmly and safely in her womb. Later, she cradled me in her arms, held me to her breast and I heard the same familiar rhythm. As we swayed back and forth she murmured soft sounds that added melody and lyrics and it became a lullaby, comforting me to sleep.

And, while you might not remember back quite that far, surely you feel that same, familiar rhythm pulsing through your own veins, pushing life through your body, animating your every move.

Yes, music is as old as human life, and the appreciation, enjoyment, and creation of it continues to bring joy, understanding, and emotional release to our lives.

Whether you write music, perform it, dance to it, study it, or just like to hum along, Platinum Pearls® has something for you on the music picks web page http://www.platinumpearls.com/platinumpearls/creativeb.htm. Click around the page for sources of inspiration if you are a songwriter, or to further enhance your understanding or enjoyment of music as a creator or as a listener.

As to Mom’s heart . . . it had a good beat, I gave it an 85.

Barking Frog Music Group - How It All Began.

The Story of The Barking Frog Music Group


"The mind will play funny tricks on you. One minute you’re in a business meeting or hard at work on the job, and then, something will hit you that brings back a familiar taste, or smell, or feeling, and the next thing you know, you’re remembering those times years ago, sitting around a campfire after a big camp meal, with friends or family. I remember we’d pull up logs and sit around . . just poking the fire, swatting bugs, swapping stories and singing songs, a lot of them made up right there on the spot. We’d pass around the guitar and those that could play would. Those that couldn’t would tell a joke, or a story, or recite a poem. But we’d all join in with something, and it’d go on ‘til the moon was way overhead, and the fire had burned down to red hot coals.

There’d be plenty of laughing and kidding around … and sometimes we’d get to laughing so hard that a “different” noise would come from somewhere around the campfire ... and everyone would look around at all the other faces in the smoke to try to guess who the guilty party was. Sooner or later, it would be agreed that it must have been just a big frog . . barking at the moon.

Those “barking frogs” earned quite a reputation in our part of the country, and it was hard to have a camp-out where you wouldn’t hear at least one or two. So, it came to be generally known that anyone who would come, and maybe join in and play, or sing, say a poem or tell a joke, was automatically a member of the Barking Frog Music Group. And back then, we had meetings just as often as we could.

Now, it’s a gathering around a virtual campfire. We call it the bfmg Café, and nearly every night it’s a new group of members sitting around playing their songs, and singing, and telling stories. Maybe you’ll join in, or maybe you’ll want to just sit back and listen. Either way, we hope you’ll have so much fun you’ll come back often. Click to the bfmg Café, put a beverage in your hand, put that work day behind you, and drag up a log! You're a member of the Barking Frog Music Group!

P.S. You might want to have a souvenir of your visit to the bfmg Café, or proof that you are a proud member of the Barking Frog Music Group. You’re invited to drop by the store to look over the bfmg collection. Cool!"

If I Had a Dollar For Every Time I Have Used This Book, I Would Be Writing This in Napa Valley

Pat Pattison is a professor of music and songwriting at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he developed the curriculum for their degree in songwriting--the first of its kind anywhere. He was a regular contributor to Home and Studio Recording Magazine. He lives in North Hampton, New Hampshire.

I first met Pat in Nashville. I was living and writing there for awhile, and Pat would come down from the Boston area and spend his summers in Nashville, working with some of the great songwriters in the area, as well as teaching seminars. We had mutual friends, and soon I was visiting his summer house on a weekly basis, at the foot of the master. He is a joy to work with.

In this book, Pat presents a unique, in-depth approach to the process of lyric writing. Apprentice songwriters will examine 17 extraordinary songs and learn the distinct elements that make them so effective. Pattison then presents more than 30 lyric-writing exercises designed to help them achieve the same results. From generating lyric ideas and managing repetition to developing verses, it's all here. Songwriters will:

* find warm-up exercises that revolutionize songwriting imagery

* use a rhyming dictionary and a thesaurus to generate ideas and find snappy rhymes

* create meaningful metaphors and similes while avoiding clichés

* develop verses by using or by breaking conventional rules

* experiment with point of view in every lyric to make a song stand out.

Buy Now - Writing Better Lyrics

For more music tips, visit http://www.platinumpearls.com/ and search out the "Music Picks" page. Or, if you are really into songwriting, click on http://www.barkingfrogmusic.com/. In any event, keep listening, keep writing, keep it fresh.

We Are All Artists, Some Still Looking For Our Medium

A very important part of living a more fulfilling life is the exploration of your creative self to release the imaginative potential awaiting there.

Many people have gone through life never stepping outside the traces of humdrum everyday activities long enough to find out who they really are, creatively speaking. You may have harbored urges to "someday" spend more time on that dream of becoming and living more artistically, but have never taken the time to actually do it. Well, someday just started, so get busy.

You may have an art or craft that you are already involved in. If so, good for you! Hopefully, on the PlatinumPearls.com pages you will find information that will inspire you to a higher level of creativity and satisfaction in your art.

If if have not ventured into the arts environment before, come and find out what you have been missing. You will discover the many rewards of your "time away from the real world". Working just a few hours each week at your favorite artistic release will soon become mini-vacations that refresh and relax you, and clear your mind from the work-a-day clutter.

Just choose something that appeals to you and go for it. Everyone started as a beginner, and you'll find a lot of interesting people willing to help you every step of the way.

For example, "Painting Word Pictures" a Platinum Pearls® workshop, focuses on writing creatively. Strong sensory images can make your writing or lyrics sparkle. The workshop helps you learn how to tap into an endless well of creative imagery.

"Music Picks" takes you into the world of music, writing, playing or just listening and enjoying.

The pages of "Create It Yourself " are your pathway to a host of creative endeavors including pottery, jewelry and metalsmithing, woodworking, carving, and fiber and needle arts, and there is more to come.

If you are into the visual arts of photography, painting or video creation, the spot for you is our "Visual Arts" section, which we hope to expand soon to encompass graphic design and sculpture.

We'd like you to consider sharing information, ideas, helpful tips or sources for your favorite creative outlet with other PlatinumPearls.com readers and members. After all, we are a community.